Government Contracting

With the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 expiring in September 2026, defense experts are urging Congress to modernize the statute. Expanding legal protections to AI vendors will incentivize voluntary sharing of critical model vulnerabilities across defense networks.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services leaders Kim Brandt and Patrick Newbold are instilling a culture of rapid IT capability delivery and enterprise scaling, aligning operational oversight with technology leadership.

The White House has established strict accountability timelines for post-quantum cryptography migration across federal agencies, compelling defense contractors and civilian IT suppliers to rapidly modernize cryptographic standards to defend against future quantum computing decryption threats.

Twenty-five years after 9/11, House lawmakers are pushing bipartisan proposals to solidify the Director of National Intelligence's authority across the 18-element Intelligence Community following recent controversial budget and headcount cuts.

Chief Information Officer Kirsten Davies issued a department-wide policy instruction establishing a comprehensive framework to accelerate, secure, and manage mission software. The directive standardizes software acquisition, DevSecOps practices, and continuous authorization pathways to enhance operational readiness across critical systems.

CISA has issued an updated Insider Threat Mitigation Guide featuring new case studies and strategies to help defense, critical infrastructure, and government contracting leaders address converging physical and cyber risk vectors.

The Department of Defense is expanding the Maven Smart System beyond intelligence and target processing into core operational workflows, including logistics, force readiness, and fiscal planning. This trajectory underscores a broader Pentagon push to embed AI across enterprise decision-making functions.

The Small Business Administration has received extensive public feedback regarding proposed revisions to federal size standards, particularly within IT services under NAICS 541511. The outcome will reshape competitive dynamics, small business set-asides, and subcontracting rules across the defense industrial base.

The U.S. Army has launched market research for the Consolidated Product-Line Management, Sustainment, and Modernization (CPMSM) contract. The award will provide total lifecycle support for the branch's Live Training Transformation architecture across 200 global sites ahead of a 2028 incumbent expiration.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is preparing a task order recompete valued over $100 million for integrated assessment and cyber hygiene services via GSA Alliant 2. The expanded vehicle supports CISA’s vulnerability management mission across federal and critical infrastructure networks.

Structural disconnects between Chief Growth Officers and Chief Operating Officers undermine recompetes and on-contract growth. By shifting capture metrics onto operational scorecards, contractors can protect core revenues and capitalize on critical field intelligence.

Federal agencies and defense contractors must shift focus from mere hiring metrics to job quality, leveraging acquisition levers to stabilize the defense industrial workforce and protect mission readiness.

The National Reconnaissance Office, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and U.S. Space Force have resolved jurisdictional overlaps regarding commercial intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. This alignment establishes clear procurement pathways, operational tasking boundaries, and faster data delivery for tactical warfighters.

DOW has secured seven-year supply agreements with General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin to expand raw material capacity for PAC-3 and THAAD missile production. The long-term commitments aim to resolve critical defense supply chain bottlenecks and accelerate missile defense output.

The Department of the Navy is requesting industry feedback on software-based post-quantum encryption solutions designed to secure critical communications without requiring expensive or time-consuming hardware modifications to existing radios and cryptographic equipment.

SBA Deputy Director Bill Briggs will address small business capital access, artificial intelligence adoption, and contracting opportunities at the 2026 FedCiv Summit, emphasizing key growth pathways for SDVOSBs and 8(a) firms across federal networks.

CMS has selected Mathematica and Deloitte to execute its four-year Learning Insights for Action initiative, leveraging advanced data analytics to scale high-performing healthcare delivery and payment models across federal programs.

The U.S. Air Force has issued a market research notice to overhaul its enterprise Product Lifecycle Management infrastructure. Ahead of Siemens' contract expiration in 2029, the service seeks to consolidate fragmented deployments, reactivate thousands of software licenses, and standardize digital thread architecture across key logistics complexes.

The National Security Agency issued new security guidance targeting Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) threats, publishing a threat catalog and baseline assurance standard. The guidelines help defense acquisition officials and contractors secure microelectronics supply chains against hardware vulnerabilities.

The Department of Justice has launched the National Fraud Detection Center alongside the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations to target complex, multi-agency fraud schemes. The initiative signals heightened regulatory oversight and data-driven enforcement across federal procurement, grant funding, and defense contracting.

The SBA and defense leaders have established the Smaller War Plants Commission to strengthen sub-tier manufacturing capacity, expand capital access for small firms, and de-risk critical defense supply chains.

The U.S. Marine Corps has issued a solicitation to transition Camp Lejeune's armory management from manual paper tracking to a commercial Software-as-a-Service system. Set aside for SDVOSBs, the procurement serves as an early real-world test of proposed Federal Acquisition Regulation reforms.

Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao has appointed Andrew Magliochetti as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for the Defense Industrial Base. Magliochetti will oversee strategic initiatives to strengthen supply chain resiliency, expand shipyard capacity, and accelerate naval fleet readiness.

The General Services Administration has reinstated FedRAMP Director Pete Waterman while tapping Treasury CIO Sam Corcos for three key acting executive roles across GSA. The moves signal consolidated leadership over federal cloud authorization, tech procurement, and digital identity infrastructure.

House lawmakers have introduced legislation targeting algorithmic pricing transparency and restricting federal preemption of local authority over AI data center construction. The bills underscore rising federal and local friction over critical digital infrastructure buildouts.

The U.S. Army is seeking a single small business prime for a $49 million contract supporting Western Hemisphere Command and U.S. Army Reserve live-fire training ranges, emphasizing technical master gunner expertise over price.

The Department of Defense has published Civilian Personnel Per Diem Bulletin Number 332, revising non-foreign overseas lodging and subsistence rates for official travel to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, and U.S. possessions for Calendar Year 2026.

The U.S. Navy and Royal Australian Navy have launched Project TALON, a joint program to modernize their shared MH-60 Seahawk maritime helicopter fleets. Industry primes Sierra Nevada Corp., Lockheed Martin, and Collins Aerospace have been selected to deliver advanced mission capability updates.

A new Pentagon memorandum directs the development of software to automate direct access to defense contractors' financial systems, signaling a major shift toward real-time oversight, financial transparency, and automated audit capabilities across the defense industrial base.

The U.S. Air Force has issued a Request for Information for a sensor-agnostic emulator trainer to support the modernization of its Distributed Common Ground System. This initiative aims to streamline intelligence operator training across diverse airborne and orbital collection platforms.

NASA has allocated $10.5 million across seven educational institutions to establish state-level technical training hubs. The initiative addresses critical labor shortages in the U.S. aerospace sector, strengthening the defense industrial base and civil space mission readiness.

The GAO has called on NASA to address four unresolved high-priority oversight recommendations out of 46 total directives. The lingering gaps signal tighter contract compliance, enhanced financial scrutiny, and potential program oversight shifts across federal space acquisitions.

The Social Security Administration has issued an RFI focused on enterprise AI infrastructure and talent acquisition. The initiative reflects a broader federal push to scale operational AI and modernize high-volume data systems.